The Coachmaster 



railway that my Father could not find it in 

 his heart to claim it. 



My Father finding himself in a sorry 

 plight indeed, felt in honour bound to call a 

 meeting of his creditors ; there were not 

 many of them, and they were chiefly 

 farmers and corn-merchants, from Lewes 

 or thereabouts. So they came on a sultry 

 August afternoon, and met together in the 

 parlour of the " Old Ship." My Father was 

 then too ailing to attend ; and it appeared 

 that when these worthies were all 

 assembled they were quite at a loss as to 

 what they should do. One can picture 

 them, I think, after their first interchang^e 

 of nods and laconic rustic greetings, eye- 

 ing one another furtively, or gazing round 

 the room at the engraving of his Majesty 

 George IV. in coronation robes, and the 

 coloured print of '' The Age " coach, driven 



by the Hon. S. J ; and then the heroic 



attempt of some one to make conversation 

 on the subject of the late swine-fever, or 

 the prospect of the harvest ; and the 

 sudden silences, when the same man 

 started a gentle whistle to keep his spirits 

 up, and everybody waited for some one to 

 begin. 



At last a huge bull-necked corn- 

 merchant from Lewes stood up and said, 

 76 



